


Melting Amber

by orphan_account



Category: One Piece
Genre: Abuse, Adoption, Akuma no Mi | Devil Fruit, Amber Lead Syndrome, Angst, Branding, Depression, Donquixote Family - Freeform, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Flashbacks, Hurt/Comfort, Illnesses, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Nightmares, Panic Attacks, Rape/Non-con Elements, Recovery, Self-Harm, Terminal Illnesses
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-23
Updated: 2020-06-14
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:04:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24331756
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Rosinante, an undercover investigator for the police force, has his life flipped upside-down once he comes across a young orphan with a strange illness... and far too much knowledge about the leader of an underground crime ring that Rosinante knows all too well.This story will follow a broken, dying boy and a Donquixote who wishes for nothing more than to help a soul that has been crushed one too many times by the cruel world and his cursed family name.
Relationships: Donquixote "Corazon" Rosinante & Trafalgar D. Water Law
Comments: 19
Kudos: 50





	1. Winter

**Author's Note:**

> Hello there...! This is going to be my first ever fanfiction, so take it easy on me. I would appreciate comments on how to improve my work. Thanks for reading!

The weather outside was… undesirable, to say the least. A thick blanket of white covered the ground, only disturbed by Rosinante’s clumsy footsteps crunching through the snow. The white substance fell in large, thick flurries, and the cruel chill of the wind caused Rosinante to hug his arms tightly around his torso. Nobody in their right mind would be walking around out here in such inclement weather – but Rosinante needed a moment to clear his mind, and smoking was prohibited inside of the station - so he found himself wandering around outside.

That was how he had begun his walk down the trail that led into the woods. It was a few years old by now, and was originally created after the state had received donations from a few kind sponsors. In better weather conditions, there were usually joggers or walkers that chatted while making their way down the dirt pathway. 

Now, it was completely silent. Rosinante lit up a cigarette, placing his hand over the top to prevent it from getting wet. He inhaled slowly as he put his lighter away, his body feeling the relief from the action before it was even physically possible for the nicotine to take any effect. It was a psychological reaction to his addiction that Rosinante unconsciously fell for every single time. Sometimes, just _seeing_ the cigarettes gave him a sense of relief – but he didn’t care to analyze it too much.

Rosinante didn’t dwell on his unhealthy habit and instead decided to look at how different his usual surroundings were in the snow. The forest all looked the same underneath the overwhelming amount of white. Without knowing the general location of the trail, it would be difficult to navigate through the surrounding wilderness. There were all kinds of vicious-looking plants and thorns waiting underneath the snow that would cause trouble for anyone who decided to blindly walk around in the woods. Rosinante imagined with slight amusement how awful it would be for someone as clumsy as himself to have to fumble through the thicket.

As he walked, Rosinante flexed his fingers open and closed to attempt and fend off the cold weather that was already beginning to tighten his joints. Even with his jacket on, he was already feeling the effects of the bitter cold after only about fifteen minutes outside.

Though Rosinante had originally come outside to take a break, he found his mind wandering back to the remaining paperwork that was waiting for him back at the station. When he wasn’t undercover working on a case for his boss Sengoku, Rosinante was usually forced to complete mundane tasks or give aid to some other officers until he was needed again. Sengoku was more like a grandfather to Rosinante than a boss – and they often had difficulty keeping things professional whenever they were together. 

Now that he thought about it, everybody Rosinante worked with seemed to be an oddball with some type of personal attachment to their branch of the police force. There was Smoker (who he didn’t see much), who was known to be quite the rogue officer. The strong and imposing man always went off his own leads and didn’t follow his superiors’ orders very often. If Smoker wasn’t so good at what he did, then he would surely have been fired by now. His partner, Tashigi, always seemed to be able to reign Smoker in before he got too out of hand. 

Then there was the old man Garp, who always seemed to be chatting with Sengoku about his various trouble-making grandchildren. Just by thinking about the older man, Rosinante could hear his loud, hearty laugh and see his wide smile. There was also-

Rosinante’s daydreaming was cut off as he missed a hidden divot in the road. His foot twisted slightly sideways, and the tall male was sent tumbling into the wet snow. The chill from his now wet pants caused the man to sit up quickly with a shiver – being wet made the weather so much less tolerable. Rosinante quickly shuffled around a bit in the snow to look for his dropped cigarette, not wanting to leave any litter behind. He was an officer, after all, and it would go against his morals to leave something like that outside. Rosinante moved his tense, numb fingers through the snow, hoping that he might be able to feel the object.

What he didn't expect was his fingers to brush over something soft and fluffy. Rosinante curiously grabbed the object and lifted it from the layer of snow it had been buried under. He dusted it off and saw that it was a hat – a kid sized hat, to be exact. It was made of a white, fur-like material with several brown spots scattered on it. Rosinante’s brows furrowed as he wondered how a kid wouldn’t notice something like their own hat being gone - especially if it was cold outside. They would at least have to pick it back up if they dropped it, right? 

Rosinante shrugged it off, shaking the hat a little to get rid of any remaining snow. He decided that it would be better to keep it with him then to leave it laying on the ground for any longer.

Just as he was about to start walking back, something else caught the man’s eye. Slightly beyond him in the snow was a trail of small footsteps leading off the path. Branches and thorny bushes were broken and trampled, as if whoever left the footprints had been in a rush to get somewhere. Rosinante was suddenly a bit curious as to if he would find anything else if he followed the little trail into the snow – and somewhere in the back of his mind, his well-trained warning bells were ringing.

The tall male walked slowly, as not to trip on the uneven ground, and followed the trail left in the snow. It went quite a bit off the path – and each step that Rosinante took, he felt as if his situation grew more urgent. It was probably just a kid wandering around in the snow, right? Despite one million logical explanations for the footsteps and the crushed plant life, Rosinante felt the same as he did when he was chasing a dangerous lead to an important case.

The man caught sight of a piece of ripped cloth that was snagged on a particularly prickly thorn bush. As he neared it to take a closer look, Rosinante let out a very non-manly yelp as the ground practically fell underneath him - and he was sent tumbling yet again down an unseen hill in the snow.

“Agh, geez… where the hell did that come from?” He muttered to himself as the lanky man found his feet once again and brushed himself off. Now he was _definitely_ freezing his ass off, and he knew that everyone back at the station would find his current state hilarious. It was just so comical to them that he always seemed to… well, slip up.

Rosinante’s daydream about his coworkers' embarrassing comments was cut off immediately as he caught a slight movement in the corner of his eye. It had been subtle, but was just enough to catch his attention.

The man crept towards what he thought he saw, making sure to stay quiet and slow as he moved. There was an old, dark tree at the end of the trail of footsteps he had been following. At the bottom of the dead tree was a small portion that was caved in. It looked like the perfect spot for some type of large animal to make their den inside of. Rosinante neared curiously, hoping that all he had been following was some type of badger – wouldn’t that be an interesting story to tell once he got back to the station?

Rosinante stopped in front of the tree and ducked down slowly, lowering his towering height to be able to see inside of the small den space. In hindsight, if it really was a wild animal that he had been following, then what he was doing now would certainly _not_ be the correct way to approach it. But what he did see in the tree instead caused Rosinante’s breath to catch painfully in his throat.

Cramped uncomfortably into the small space was… a _child_. A small, shivering ball of ripped up clothes who sat with his legs pulled up to his chest and his eyes screwed tightly shut. It was almost as if he hadn’t noticed that Rosinante was there at all. The man just sat there for a moment and _stared_ – what was he supposed to do now? He had left his phone back at the station, and Rosinante certainly didn’t know the proper procedure for dealing with a kid who was quickly turning into an icicle.

Rosinante quickly gained his composure at the possible urgency of the situation and thought it would be best to speak up.

“Hey, are you okay?” He asked the boy softly, hoping to get some sort of answer out of him. 

At hearing his voice, the boy’s eyes suddenly flew open. Having been surprised, the boy flinched back at Rosinante’s voice and hit the back of his hiding space with a small thump. The kid rubbed at his hurt head for a moment before eyeing Rosinante with a piercing and wary gaze. He refused to answer the question.

Rosinante was silent for a moment, but then remembered the hat that was tucked underneath his arm after his fingers had unconsciously clenched tighter around its brim. He removed it from the hiding place and held it out to the child with a friendly smile on his face.

“Is this yours?” He asked, flashing a tiny smile.

In an instant, the kid’s hand darted out and grabbed the hat from Rosinante’s hand. He placed it onto his head roughly despite the absorbent material still being wet. The man just blinked in surprise, not expecting the urgency from the kid, before returning his outstretched hand to his side. 

A breeze blew by, and Rosinante felt the harsh chill all the way down to his bones. He shivered, looking at the wary gaze coming from the boy inside of the bottom of the tree. Depending on how long he hesitated, Rosinante knew that this situation could become dangerous for the kid. The child likely wouldn’t notice the signs of hypothermia, and would just think that he was suddenly getting sleepy…

“How long have you been out here for?” Rosinante asked, attempting to get only the vital information he would need to assess the situation. By the sight of the boy’s uncontrollable shivering, the answer was likely _‘way too long.’_ The kid’s golden eyes were piercing as they scanned Rosinante, as if searching for a deeper meaning to his question. Rosinante simply smiled patiently at the boy as if he were just genuinely curious. After a few moments, the boy broke his gaze and glanced to the side before answering.

“A few days.” He said quietly before looking back up at Rosinante with uncertainty, as if he wished he could retract his answer. The man attempted to stifle his surprised expression – he had been expecting an answer that indicated the child had wandered off from his parents for a bit and had gotten lost, but it seemed that was not the case. 

“Do you know where your parents are?” Rosinante asked quickly after, beginning to get worried for the kid. The boy shifted uncomfortably for several long moments and looked at the snowy ground below him. The brim of his hat cast a small shadow over his face, and his gaze was downcast.

“Dead.” Was all the kid whispered, which caught Rosinante entirely off guard. His brows furrowed deeply, and he looked at the child with a frown, realizing quickly that this situation was far more complicated than just a kid who had wandered off from his parents.

“I’m... sorry to hear that...” Rosinante eventually spoke, his voice sympathetic and understanding. He shifted slightly in his position, growing a bit antsy to get this kid out of the snow. “It’s pretty cold out here… why don’t you come with me and go somewhere warmer?” He asked kindly enough, but the boy looked entirely unimpressed.

“How do I know you’re not just tricking me?” The kid asked with a snarky tone, and Rosinante shrugged.

“That’s a good point, kid. Don’t trust strangers.” Rosinante spoke with a nod of approval before reaching into his jacket. The child watched curiously as he ruffled around inside of the jacket for a few moments. After finding what he was looking for, Rosinante held out his badge to the kid, who looked it over curiously. “Lucky for you, I’m a policeman. We help people.” Rosinante smiled down at the kid before putting his identification back away, hoping that would be enough to convince the child that he wasn’t a kidnapper.

“…No, they don’t.” The kid muttered under his breath, which caused Rosinante to quirk a brow questioningly. The child eyed him for a few moments as if considering his options, which were very few: freeze to death, or trust this stranger. 

“What will you give me if I go with you?” The kid asked after contemplating, and Rosinante couldn’t help the grin that came over his face. The shrimp was going to try and barter his way out of this?

Rosinante put a hand to his chin and thought for a moment, as if considering it a serious exchange. “Well, we’ve got plenty of snacks back at the station… it’s warm there, and there’s a comfy couch that’s just begging for someone to sit on it.” Rosinante tried to be convincing, and the look on the kid’s face confirmed that he was winning him over. 

“Is it a deal?” The officer asked, reaching out one large hand to the boy. He accepted the offer, and the boy’s tiny, trembling hand felt like a fragile icicle within Rosinante’s large one. He was afraid that if he grabbed too hard it would snap and crunch within his grip. “It’s nice doing business with you, mister…?” Rosinante asked, attempting to sneak a name out of the boy.

“Law.” The kid spoke abruptly, voice difficult to read. It was a bit of a strange name, but it seemed to fit the odd child.

“It’s nice to meet you, Law. My name is Rosinante.” The adult spoke, reveling in his success at persuading Law to come out with him as he watched the boy slowly climb out from his hiding space.

Now that he could get a good look at the kid, Rosinante could see that he likely hadn’t changed his clothes in a long time. He wore an old, tattered, brown coat and long grey pants. They were both wet from where Law had been sitting on the snowy ground. The kid’s teeth were chattering with the amount he was shivering, and Rosinante couldn’t help but feel bad for him. “Do you want to borrow my coat?” He asked, more than prepared to shed it for the boy.

“I’m fine.” Was the only reply he got, and he didn’t push any further. It would have been way too big for the kid, anyway. 

“Follow me, then. I’ll walk you back to the station.” Rosinante said, not wanting to be too direct and attempt to pick up the defensive child. He would let him follow at his own pace. Kids could be touchy with people they didn’t know, and the officer had a feeling that this one wouldn’t take kindly to being carried around. 

He walked slowly, noticing the large difference in height he had with Law, and made sure that the boy could keep up. They quickly reached the little cliff that Rosinante had slipped down, and he noticed with a frown that Law was having difficulty climbing back up it in the snow.

“Need a hand?” He asked kindly, and Law begrudgingly accepted Rosinante’s outstretched hand for assistance. The officer forced himself to stay calm as he walked back towards the station. He felt like he was walking in slow motion – and Law’s ragged huffing behind Rosinante was a bit worrying to listen to. The kid was walking slowly, and it seemed to take all of his effort to trudge step by step through the thick snow. At least moving around would increase his blood flow, if just a little.

Rosinante stopped to wait for Law to catch up and looked down when the kid had suddenly grabbed onto his pant leg for balance.

“Hey, Law…” He began carefully, looking into those cautious golden eyes as they glared up at him. “Would you mind it if I carried you there so that we can get warm faster?” Rosinante asked, hoping that he could get this stubborn kid to at least agree to his demand. It would get both of them to the station quickly where they could deal with their situation and get out of the frigid weather.

After some serious thinking from the kid, Law finally agreed. “…Only if you put me down when we get there.”

Rosinante lifted a brow at the weird request, but nodded his agreement. Rosinante lifted him with gentle hands and adjusted him until Law was comfortable before he began walking. The officer noted that the kid couldn’t have weighed more than sixty pounds – he was barely even a weight in Rosinante’s arms. That fact subtly caused his stomach to squirm with a vague worry about what had happened to this kid.

Rosinante thought to himself in the silence that came over the two as they walked. Question after question flashed in his head about the boy in his arms, and he held back from asking every single one as soon as it came to him. The entire way back to the station, Rosinante could feel Law’s wary gaze trained on his face, as if he were searching for something deep inside of him that couldn't be seen on the surface.


	2. Contract

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I want to thank some of the people who gave me advice for improving my writing on my previous chapter! :) I have edited the spacing of chapter one to be a bit more readable for you guys.
> 
> As I said before, I'm always open to constructive criticism! This is my first fanfiction, after all, so I could use all the help that I can get. I'm only two chapters in and I'm already struggling... hopefully I'll get into the groove soon.

As the police station came into sight at the end of the trail, Rosinante felt the kid begin to push impatiently at his arms. He took this as a silent sign that Law wanted to be put down, and Rosinante decided that he would follow his earlier promise to let him walk the rest of the way once they got close to the station. The officer gently lowered Law down until his small feet touched the snow before letting him go. The kid sank through it and down to the hard ground below like a stone into water. The snow came up a little bit past the short boy’s knees, and Law had to take ridiculously large steps to make any progress moving forward. It would have been amusing to watch the kid drag his tiny feet and stick-thin legs through the snow if the current situation hadn’t been causing Rosinante’s stomach to squirm with unspoken worry.

Rosinante watched Law carefully as he walked, his own steps far more casual due to his height. The man was _freakishly_ tall – his height was almost at an unhealthy level where his heart would be unable to properly circulate blood throughout his body. Rosinante had always been the largest person in any room he went into and often gained himself some astonished looks from strangers whenever he went out in public. His exaggerated frame was apparently something to gawk at. Standing out wasn’t exactly a good thing for his undercover work, but it somehow all turned out alright in the end. Rosinante’s clumsiness and goofy behavior (that he _swore_ was all just and act) usually caught people off guard – and after seeing him as nothing but a blundering idiot, it was difficult to suspect him of being a spy.

Even though he was tall, Rosinante’s build could be considered a bit on the lankier side. He had tried weight training many times before and had to go through basic academy training in order to work under Sengoku, but had never been able to pack as much muscle onto his form as some of the other guys that he knew. Rosinante was often subtly jealous of men like Smoker who seemed to be made of nothing but pure muscle. The genetic lottery was a difficult one to win, it seemed.

Luckily for Rosinante, just being as tall as he was usually allowed the man to have a certain advantage in fights. His height brought a monstrous strength of its own when it was utilized properly, and he had been taught how to use it by Sengoku. Being absolutely shredded was not always necessary to get the upper hand in a fight, and Rosinante had experienced that time and time again in his line of business. 

Rosinante’s “steps” through the snow were just small shuffles of his big, clumsy feet. They felt a bit numb from being out in the cold for so long, and a tingling feeling had begun to come over both his fingers and his toes. They felt almost like they did whenever he crossed his legs for too long and they fell asleep – he had that uncomfortable ‘pins and needles’ feeling that he had grown accustomed to experiencing due to all the weird ways that he sat. Rosinante glanced over at the small child next to him, watching as the pipsqueak struggled to walk through the snow, before looking back up at the station as they neared the door.

Once they finally arrived at the building, Rosinante opened the door and ushered Law inside. The officer then walked inside the building himself with a relieved sigh, happy to feel the difference in temperature from to the cruel chill of the outdoors. There were not many people bustling around inside compared to a normal day in the station. The only person that Rosinante could see in the front was a young, pink-haired boy who had recently been hired to work as a custodian. One of the old guys in charge, Garp, had liked his spirit, and gave him the job based off of that alone – but the kid seemed to be eternally grateful for the opportunity. He was sweeping the floor with an intense, unbreakable focus, with headphones on blasting a loud yet indiscernible tune. He hadn’t even seemed to notice that Rosinante and Law had walked inside of the door.

Rosinante took a few steps forwards before glancing behind him, realizing that Law was still stood still at the door, looking around with an analytical gaze.

“Come on – my office is over here.” Rosinante invited, motioning for the young boy to follow with a gentle movement of his hand. The kid squinted up at him for a moment before deciding to follow with a small huff, hunching his shoulders as he did so. 

Once they were inside of the office room, Rosinante grabbed the door handle and left the door open just a few inches. The officer wanted to make sure that Law felt safe and that he thought he had some sort of ‘escape route’ in case he grew uncomfortable. Rosinante had been a difficult kid himself back in the day, so he knew how important such a small comfort could be. He wanted to make sure that the child in front of him felt as secure as possible, considering that he was in a place that could be considered threatening even for some adults. He figured that leaving him an ‘out’ would be a good way of doing that.

The adult moved to his old, rickety chair and sunk down into the soft material, crossing one leg over his knee. His pants were still wet, but he didn’t have anything else to change into. He sighed, knowing that he would just have to deal with it until he got home later that night. Since they were a dark navy color, at least he didn’t have to worry about anyone noticing the dark spots from the wet snow. The man unzipped and removed his jacket, knowing that he didn't need it anymore now that he was back indoors. He threw it over top of an old filing cabinet pushed against the wall before turning to face Law, who was still standing in the doorway.

Rosinante opened his mouth once to speak but closed it again as Law took it upon himself to go where the officer had been about to direct him. The kid walked over to the couch against the wall, his small feet making a tiny _pitter patter_ on the ground. Law put his hands on the couch cushion and pushed himself up and onto it with a small grunt of effort. He then settled into a comfortable spot and looked at Rosinante with those curious golden eyes of his. The officer exhaled, the sound coming from somewhere deep inside of his chest. Rosinante wasn’t the type to deal with any cases concerning children – and frankly, he was unsure how to even _interact_ with one. Rosinante dug out his phone from where he had left it on his desk and began typing out a text to a female associate who he thought might be able to help him out. She was probably doing her own work somewhere else in the station or nearby. As his big thumbs tapped at the screen, he spoke to the kid across from him.

“You can make yourself at home. There’s a vending machine outside if you’re hungry, and… I could grab you a blanket or something if you’re still cold?” Rosinante rattled off the few things that he could think of for the kid to do, tapping his fingers absent-mindedly on his desk after having sent the text. He then moved to open several drawers on the side of it, his large hands rummaging around for something.

After reaching the fourth drawer, Rosinante let out a small “aha!” and pulled out a plastic bag filled with various types of coins. Rosinante stood up and began walking towards Law with the bag, a little smile on his face. Unfortunately, he didn’t make it very far… he ended up tripping over his own still-numb feet, toppling to the ground with a surprised cry. He landed as a pile of slightly-aching, tangled up limbs. He was making a great first impression, it seemed.

Rosinante sat up after a moment with a groan. He gave Law an embarrassed grin while outstretching his hand with the bag of coins, offering them to the kid. Rosinante was used to his clumsiness. He tried to fend off his overwhelming self-consciousness at his unfixable incompetence with nervous grins, such as the one that he was giving to Law. The kid smiled slightly at his expression and gently took the bag of coins, his little hand being weighed down for a moment before he adjusted the strength it took to lift it up.

“…You’re funny, mister Rosinante.” Law spoke, his voice even and quiet. Shy, almost. There was a hint of amusement to the way that he said it. The kid held the large bag of coins to his chest and slipped off the couch before walking silently out the door - presumably to get some snacks. 

Rosinante sighed, his large grin fading into a tiny smile - and then, eventually, a subtle frown. At least the serious-looking child had found his inelegance to be amusing. The adult’s now-aching back couldn’t say quite the same. The officer stood up slowly and stretched, his spine making a few popping noises as he did so. He then took a few careful steps back to his chair, where he sat down with a huff and logged into his computer. 

_’The kid said that his name was Law… but is that even his real name?’_ Rosinante asked himself while itching at his neck, wondering if it would come up in the database if he typed it in. The man moved his mouse, the cursor slowly making its way over to where he needed it to go. The sensitivity of his computer mouse always pissed him off. No matter how many times and different ways he adjusted it, the mouse was either too sensitive or not sensitive enough. It never wanted to listen to him. After going through several different logins, Rosinante was finally able to access reports of missing persons, general citizen information, and some of the other things that he might need. Rosinante had forgotten some of the many difficult passwords and had to sit and think for a while until they came suddenly to his brain or muscle memory took over and remembered for him. The process to get into the databases was annoying as hell, and the software he was forced to use was irritatingly outdated. Luckily, since he was no ordinary “officer,” Rosinante had easier access to a bunch of different types of information that would take many others a while to get permission to access. 

The door was eventually pushed open a bit, which grabbed Rosinante’s attention. Law came wandering back into the room with his arms full of different snacks. Rosinante watched as the kid trotted back over to the couch, setting down his goods first so that he could use both hands to push himself back up onto it and settle into the same spot as before. His tiny body barely sunk into the old cushions. 

“Find anything good?” Rosinante questioned curiously, glancing down at his phone to see that a text had popped up on the screen. He read it and typed out a quick response before turning to look at Law, who hadn’t answered his question yet. Law was impatiently opening a bag of chips, and Rosinante couldn't blame him. The kid looked half-starved. The chips appeared to be some sort of artificial cheese flavor and were covered entirely in ridges. All around him on the couch were various different types of snack bags, ranging from popcorn to cookies. Law crunched on a chip while swinging his legs slowly. 

“… A few things.” The boy replied vaguely after swallowing a bite, looking at his feet rather than at Rosinante. He ate in silence for a while, and the only sounds in the room were him crunching on a chip or Rosinante clicking and typing as he went back to his search. The man squinted at the screen. His wide shoulders were hunched over uncomfortably as he looked at the computer, fingers poking at the keys sparingly. His monstrous height looked plain wrong sitting in the office chair. 

Eventually, Rosinante rolled his chair back with a short sigh. He brought a hand to his bangs and ran his fingers through the soft blonde locks, eyes closed for a few moments. Nothing. He had found nothing at all. 

“Hey, Law…?” Rosinante began to ask, and the kid’s eyes were immediately trained on him with an intense glare. The officer put on a tiny grin, hoping that it would help Law to relax a bit. It wasn’t like he was in an interrogation or anything – Rosinante just wanted to help the kid out. “Can you tell me your last name? It would be easier for me to find you in the system if you-“

“No!” Law cried out suddenly, crushing his chip bag in his tiny hands. A look of panic had come over his face, and Rosinante frowned in confusion at the sight. “No… I can’t- you won’t find anything, even if you have my name.” The kid spoke cautiously, wearing a deeply set frown. The boy had set the crumpled bag down next to him on the couch, and instead pulled up his knees to his chest. He seemed quite upset about Rosinante’s question, but the officer couldn’t wrap his head around why.

Rosinante only grew more puzzled the longer he was around this kid – wasn’t it supposed to be the other way around? Wasn’t he supposed to get less confused with the more information he got? The officer gave a minor sigh, itching at the back of his neck, and moved to rest his forearms on his thighs. His hands dangled in between them, fingers pointed towards the ground. 

“Why do you think that they wouldn’t have you in the system?” The man questioned, his voice slow and cautious. He felt like he was approaching a finicky animal that would sprint away at the slightest sign of a threat. Perhaps that feeling wasn’t too far-fetched to have. Waiting for an answer was difficult, though it had been mere moments that he was left in silence. Rosinante’s throat felt a bit dry, and he swallowed once to quell it. Law was staring at the ground with a look that said he was far away. The brim of his hat covered the boy’s fragile-looking face, as if it would shield him from the scrutinizing outside world. Then, with a deadpanned voice and expression, Law spoke, lifting his head to look Rosinante in the eyes.

_”Because I’m supposed to be dead.”_

Rosinante’s heart felt like it had stopped for a moment in his chest before overcompensating by beating twice as fast. He just stared at the boy for a few moments, blinking, before attempting to form a surprised response. “What? What do you mea-“

Rosinante was cut off by a loud knocking on the half-opened door to his office, which startled them both. The blonde gave a hissed sigh through his teeth and glanced over as the door was opened without another moment of warning. A woman with short, dark hair stepped inside, carrying a few plastic grocery bags that were looped onto her arms. She gave Rosinante a quick, confused glance before searching the rest of the room, her eyes soon landing on Law. The boy was looking at her with an intense, serious, uncomfortable gaze. The female officer gave the kid a little smile in return and faced towards Rosinante.

“I got your texts… you know, Smoker’s going to be on my tail if he finds out that I’m taking a break like this.” She half-joked, but both knew how serious the absent officer was about his job. It was almost ironic, considering that he tended not to follow a single procedure correctly. Ever

“Ahaha… sorry about that, Tashigi.” Rosinante replied sheepishly, giving her a nervous and apologetic grin. He did not want to have with Smoker angry at her, but had no idea how to deal with his current situation and had texted her for some assistance.

“Sooo…” Tashigi began slowly, turning to face the kid. She bent down a little bit, pushing her glasses up a bit after they had slid down her nose. “What’s your name?” She asked, her tone welcoming. 

The kid gave Rosinante a moody look, but quickly turned back to the woman. “Law.” He replied blankly, just as concise as he had been with the blonde male. It seemed his tone did not discriminate. 

“Well, my name is Tashigi, like he said.” She introduced with a little smile, before quickly poking a thumb out towards Rosinante. “He’s a bit of a dolt – so if you need something and he isn’t getting it through that thick skull of his, you can come and ask me, alright?” She joked with a mischievous smile, and Rosinante looked on with a dramatized expression of shock. It looked as if he couldn’t believe that she would ever say such a thing about him. Tashigi took the bags off of her arm and set them on the couch next to Law. They rustled lightly as they touched the couch cushions, and Law curiously attempted to peek at them from where he sat. “These might be a little big now that I see you in person, but I got you a change of clothes.” The woman said, gesturing towards the bags. “There’s also some stuff in there to keep you from getting too bored in here – though I’m sure being around Roci here will keep you plenty entertained.” Tashigi giggled, knowing that the tall male had quite an… interesting personality. It would certainly keep even the most disinterested child captivated. 

She then walked over to Rosinante and dug out something crinkly from her pocket. “And for _you_ , I have the bill.” Tashigi spoke sweetly, slapping the receipt down softly on top of his desk. The blonde slid it towards himself and picked it up, reading over the items. His eyes then fell to the total price at the bottom, and he began digging through his top drawer with a subtle grumble. He quickly located and pulled out his wallet, fishing out enough money to pay for it all.

“Thanks, Tashigi.” He handed the cash over to her, and she pocketed it without bothering to count. The woman turned to the door and waved at Law over her shoulder. “If you need me for anything or get bored of this pigsty, I’ll be working somewhere down the hall.” She relayed to the child before leaving and closing the door behind her. Her gentle footsteps barely echoed at all as she walked off, leaving the two as quickly as she had come by.

Rosinante slowly closed his wallet and slid it back into the drawer, sneaking a glance at Law as he did so. He wanted to get back into the conversation they were having before Tashigi had interrupted, but also didn’t want to make the kid uncomfortable again so soon. The officer turned in the chair to face his computer, biting at his thumbnail as he thought about what he should do. The kid obviously had some type of peculiar situation, but Rosinante had zero experience in dealing with children. How should he even begin talking to the kid? Should he call someone? What would they do if there was no proof that the kid _existed_? Why had he been outside alone in the snow? What had happened to his parents?

“Um…” That small voice made itself noticed, and Rosinante turned instantly to face Law. The child grabbed two of the bags and stood, shuffling slightly in place. “Where can I change?” Law asked, seeming eager to get out of his still-wet clothes. Rosinante internally cursed at himself for not telling the kid already. Maybe Tashigi was right in that he was a bit thick-headed. He turned around and stood, his towering form casting a shadow over Law. The small boy took a subtle step back at his imposing height, but his expression remained neutral. The officer walked towards the door and opened it once again, taking a step out into the hallway. He pointed down the corridor. 

“It’s that way.” He looked back at Law to see if he was watching, and the child walked out into the direction that Rosinante had directed him. The adult watched for a moment as the kid left before ducking back into his office, leaving the door slightly ajar. He sank back into his chair, biting at the inside of his cheek in thought. Since he couldn’t find out anything about Law from inside of the system, it seemed as if Rosinante would have to find a way to get something out of the kid directly. The officer knew that he should just leave Law up to… whoever he was probably supposed to leave him up to, but something about the kid made him want to dig deeper. Law’s earlier statement still sent a subtle shiver up Rosinante’s spine. _”Because I’m supposed to be dead…”_ The words repeated inside of his head in that hollow, lifeless voice. Rosinante could still feel Law’s empty, golden eyes boring into him from when he had said it. The words disturbed Rosinante, especially coming from a child who couldn’t possibly be older than twelve. What the hell had he meant by that?

Rosinante lifted his head as the door creaked open once again several minutes later. Law trudged in on his little legs, wearing some slightly-too-big clothes that came from the bags that Tashigi had brought. He wore long, grey sweatpants with a matching darker grey sweater. The sleeves were a little too long and hung over the ends of his hands, but it wasn't anything ridiculous. The dull color complimented Law's serious gaze and yellow eyes rather perfectly. The kid tugged at the bill of his hat as if he were making sure that it fit properly onto his head of messy black hair. 

“Feeling a bit warmer now?” Rosinante questioned, sweeping his gaze over the skinny child. He had attempted to keep his voice cheerful and warm, but it was becoming difficult with his confusion and worry concerning the person that he was talking to. Law nodded with a small “Mhm” and walked back over to the couch, pulling out the cheap sketchbook and markers that Tashigi had picked out to keep him busy. The bright orange sticker with the sale price was still plastered onto the front of both items. Law opened a few markers and began testing them out, a somewhat bored expression lingering on his face. The boy’s movements on the paper were precise and careful, his eyes focused entirely on whatever he was working on.

Rosinante silently sat and watched Law draw for several minutes, lost entirely in his own thoughts. If the kid had noticed him staring, then he did not show any signs of it. Law was focused entirely on the book in his lap, sketching out something intricate and detailed with his markers. Every so often he would switch colors before going back in and scribbling something more. He stuck his tongue out, biting it gently in concentration.

Rosinante was in his own head, attempting to think of where he should even begin with the kid. He thought that it would probably be the most effective to cut to the chase and get to what he needed to know, like he would with a criminal interrogation. Stalling wouldn’t do either of them any good for long - it would only generate more anxiety around the situation. If he were lucky, it would make it even easier to chat with the kid now while he was already distracted with his drawing. It could make the conversation seem a bit less intense. More… casual. Well, as casual as talking to a police officer could get.

Rosinante began tapping his foot in a steady rhythm against the floor. The sudden noise caused Law to glance up from his notebook and study him for a moment, eyes narrowed in suspicion. 

“What is it?” Law asked attentively, as if he could read Rosinante’s intent just by looking at his face. The kid was quite perceptive, it seemed. Rosinante scooted his office chair to be closer to Law so that he was within a proper conversational distance.

“Is it… okay if I ask you some questions, Law? I want to be able to understand your situation a little bit better.” Rosinante asked, his voice gentle. He wanted to get something useful out of Law, but did not want to push hard enough that he would make the child too uncomfortable to answer. He figured that asking for permission would make the child more comfortable than if he went straight into interrogation. Law gave him a look, his eyes narrowed and lips drawn into a frown. His piercing gaze was focused on Rosinante’s face for several moments before he sighed and looked back down at his book.

“Okay.” Law conceded, a look of feigned indifference on his face. He flipped the page and started drawing once again.

Rosinante was glad that he had accepted, as he hadn’t quite thought about a backup plan to use if Law had declined. The already-tall male sat up even taller in his chair, crossing one leg over his knee as he stared at Law. “So… do you have any other family that you know about?” His words were slow and careful, as if he were afraid that talking too aggressively would cause the kid to ignore him completely. Law seemed to grow thoughtful for a moment after being asked the question. He stopped drawing for several seconds, his brows furrowed intensely.

“I… I _guess_ you could call them a family.” He shrugged, sounding unsure. “They told me that I was a part of their family, at least.” The last sentence was spoken with a bitter tone and a small scowl. Rosinante opened his mouth to talk again to ask more, but closed it quickly as Law decided to continue of his own accord. “They were bad, so I had to run away.” He stated simply, as if he were talking about leaving behind a game that he had grown bored of. 

Rosinante hesitated for a moment, wondering if his follow-up question would be received well, before deciding to try it anyways. He was curious. “Why were they bad?” He questioned, voice soft and inquisitive. The officer’s chest was beginning to grow tight. He did not want to lose these small responses. With every question he asked, Rosinante risked sending the boy into silence – and the thought of that happening made him increasingly more anxious as their conversation went on.

Law seemed to not like the question that he had been asked. He frowned, tiny hands clenching the markers in his hand tighter for a moment before they relaxed. “Not all of them were bad, I guess. They were _stupid_ , but… we got along.” The kid smiled, as if reminiscing on fond memories. “But our boss, he’s… a _real_ bad guy.” Law sounded serious. “Like in the comics.” The kid said, fingers twitching, as if that cemented the exact type of person that he was talking about. His choice of words was quite bizarre. 

Rosinante grew puzzled with Law’s description. As long as he was concerned, there was no role of “boss” in any regular family structure that the officer had ever heard of. He tried to decipher the kid’s choice in vocabulary. Was Law’s former “family” in the form of some type of gang? Rosinante knew there were a few well-known gangs in the area, but he wouldn’t have thought that they would be recruiting _kids_ into their ranks.

“That bad, huh?” Rosinante repeated with a chuckle, thinking of the person as a typical comic book villain. “Well, it’s good that you got out of there, then. I bet those guys were scary!” Rosinante continued, attempting to be as comforting as possible with Law. It seemed like whenever he talked with kids, a second type of personality naturally came out of him. He automatically became goofier and more upbeat – it was like he couldn’t help but try to please and entertain them. It was almost an entirely instinctual reaction.

“Yeah, I guess…” Law shrugged dismissively before continuing to draw. 

Rosinante noticed that Law seemed tense and decided to ease his line of questioning for a bit. Instead of pushing it further, he tried to peer at whatever Law seemed to be creating on the cheap piece of paper. “What are you drawing?” He asked, intrigued by the child’s careful lines and strict concentration. Law sighed, the sound holding a twinge of annoyance. Despite that, he turned his sketchbook to be visible to the officer. The drawing was of Law himself in shorts and a t-shirt, holding a little green creature in one hand by its leg. It looked like Law had not finished coloring in some of his skin, as there were small patches on his legs and arms that had been left entirely white and uncolored. It seemed odd, though – the spots didn’t seem to fit in with the rest of his unrealistically precise coloring job. It almost seemed as if it were intentional, though it wouldn’t make sense why he would leave parts of himself uncolored like that.

“What’s that?” He asked with a curious smile, pointing at the green blob of a creature that was drawn in Law’s hand. The entire drawing was in a cartoonish style, yet was drawn carefully and meticulously. Not a single stroke of color was outside of the lines. Despite the perfectionistic quality of the piece, Rosinante couldn’t quite tell what the animal was supposed to be. Law frowned at his response, not liking that the first thing he asked had basically been _’What is it?’_

“It’s a _frog_.” Law informed him, talking as if it were plainly obvious. After looking at it with that in mind, Rosinante could finally see it for what it was. “…I like frogs.” Law added with a toothy grin, seeming genuinely happy thinking about the creatures. He turned the sketchbook back to himself. “I want to dissect one.” His monotone voice made the ironic statement more than a bit unsettling. The kid tugged at his sweater, pulling the too-long sleeves up so that he could resume his drawing.

“That’s, uh… nice.” Rosinante gave a nervous smile, unsure of how he was supposed to respond. Had it been a joke? The kid was a bit eccentric - that was something that he could point out quite quickly. The adult watched as Law flipped to another page and changed the color of his marker to dark green. Law crossed a leg over his own knee, mirroring Rosinante’s pose. He uncapped the marker in his hand, placing the cap onto the back of it.

“I answered your questions, mister Rosinante.” Law said, shifting to sit taller on the couch. It didn’t do much considering his height, but he seemed quite imposing for a child. “Now, I want you to do something for me.” He spoke with authority, beginning to write something down in his notebook. Rosinante sat still, his attention focused eagerly on the boy in front of him. Law’s unique eyes had grabbed his attention once again. The golden irises were like that of a tiger’s; pointed and focused on nothing but their prey. On Rosinante. It was almost exciting to be under their unrelenting gaze.

After writing an entire page of something in his notebook, Law began to speak his request. “You said that you help people, right?” Law reiterated one of the first things that the adult had said to him, and Rosinante nodded in agreement. That was what he had told the boy, though it was far more complex than that. 

“Yeah, that’s right.” Rosinante responded, feeling as if he were falling into some type of inescapable trap by agreeing. He was too enthralled by the odd child to have responded any other way, even if he had wanted to. 

“Well, I need your help with something important.” Law said, his stony voice and expression faltering for just a moment before it returned full force. “There are… dangerous criminals that want to kill me, mister Rosinante.” Law fiddled with the marker in his hands for a moment, his previously confident eyes fluttering to avoid Rosinante’s gaze. He looked back up at him again, brows knit together tightly.

“This,” Law began, pushing the paper towards the adult to see, “is a contract.” Law stated, swallowing as he watched the man take it. “If you sign it, then you will agree to protect me.” The kid informed, and Rosinante read over some of the lines that he was talking about. The handwriting was quite orderly for a child. Somehow, it looked close to how it would have if it had been typed. “In exchange, I can… give you some information about them.” Law reasoned, though Rosinante had noticed that such a thing was not actually written into the contract. The kid was sly, trying to deceive him with the offer. It was almost impressive. Rosinante didn’t care if it wasn’t written there, really – the first part of it was the most worrisome to the officer. Everything this child said made Rosinante’s head twist into further confusion and worry for the small boy that he had so recently met.

“So, what do you say?” Law drew Rosinante out of his state of thought with the question, and the man gave a deep sigh. He squeezed the bridge of his nose for a moment, closing his eyes in thought before reopening them, looking at the child a troubled gaze. Law seemed a bit disheartened by his reaction, but was obviously attempting to keep up his poker face. His trembling hands gave him away.

“Listen, kid - _Law_ ,“ He corrected, using the child’s name, “I don’t need a piece of paper to want to help you, okay?” Rosinante gave a solemn smile, looking over the small boy in front of him. The notion that the kid even thought that he needed to create such a thing was disheartening, to say the least. “I’ll help you out for no charge, okay? It _is_ my job, after all.” He spoke, leaning forwards to look at Law eye-to-eye. The child’s emotions were indiscernible from the expression on his face, even for someone as experienced as Rosinante was with being able to decipher such things. “But if it makes you trust that I’ll keep my word, then I’ll sign it.” Rosinante gave a sympathetic smile, jotting down his name with the cheap marker. It smelled like some type of chemical that Rosinante could not identify.

Law nodded and took the paper back, viewing the signature for a moment before putting the notebook back into his lap. It seemed that he was satisfied with that answer, as he turned the page and continued drawing as if nothing had been spoken between them. Weird kid. “It’s nice doing business with you, mister Rosinante.” Law said before shooing him off with a hand. The relief was evident in his voice. “Don’t you have work to do over there?” He asked, signifying that he wanted Rosinante out of his hair now that his little deal was complete.

Rosinante moved his chair back over to his desk with an eye roll, remembering that he still had a big stack of paperwork awaiting him that needed to be filled out. Now that they had their ‘contract,’ Rosinante figured that he would have a bit more time to figure out what was going on with Law and what he would need to ask him next. There was no need to rush, since it was apparent that the boy would be sticking around for a while. 

No matter _what_ was happening, Sengoku would surely get on his back if he failed to fill out all of his paperwork by the end of the night – and the last thing that he wanted to do was anger the old man. So, after having made their arrangement, the two were silent, each doing their own thing. Rosinante filled out paper after boring paper, and Law drew in his sketchbook or nibbled on some snacks as the day drew to an end. It was quiet, yet not unsettlingly so. The silence was peaceful.


End file.
